Survey: Broadband Penetration Passes Three Quarter Mark

About 78% of U.S. Homes Equipped With a High-Speed Internet Connection, Says Leichtman Research Group9/26/2013 11:53 AM Eastern

By: George Winslow (Broadcasting & Cable)

About 78% of U.S. households are equipped with a broadband Internet service, but the overall proportion of households with an Internet connection at home has leveled off to about 83%, about the same as last year, according to a new survey from the Leichtman Research Group (LRG),

Broadband services now account for 94% of the Internet services among households with Internet service. That marks only a slight increase from 92% last year. High speed broadband accounted for only 33% in 2004 and 75% in 2008.

The new study also found that 55% of adults access the Internet on a smartphone, up from 44% last year.

The findings are part of a LRG survey and study, “Broadband Access & Services in the Home 2013,” which the research company has been conducting for the last 11 years.

“While overall online penetration at home has flattened, broadband has grown by attracting previous narrowband customers, late-adopters of online at home, and movers into new households,” said Bruce Leichtman, president and principal analyst for Leichtman Research Group, in a statement. “Despite an increasingly limited base of potential new subscribers, and some consumers opting to solely access the Internet on a Smartphone, broadband will continue to grow at a modest pace for the next few years.”

The survey also found little change in the number of homes that have a broadband service but do not have pay TV services, with 9% of all households falling into that category, up from 8% in the past two years.

In terms of mobile, the survey found that 19% of those who do not have a home Internet connection now get online via their smartphone, up from 12% last year. In addition, 64% of broadband subscribers also access the Internet on a smartphone, up from 52% last year.

Less than 1% of all online households say that broadband is not available in their area, down from 6% in 2008.

The study was based on a telephone survey of 1,304 adults age 18 and older, including 150 cell phone calls, and was primarily conducted in July of 2013.